In Your Place
by Fen Jien Ren
Summary: Grimmjow didn't know that there would come time when he wouldn't want to fight. It was hard fighting the man he was fighting for, and it was even harder to face the consequences of his actions. All he wanted was to stop hiding, not this...


**In Your Place.**

Grimmjow stood in the darkness, blue eyes following the slim form of a raven-haired Arrancar clad in black and white. He had been watching this prey of his for quite a while, and it had been ever since he figured out that this prey was unlike no other. This green-eyed prey was someone he couldn't eat, he couldn't destroy, and he couldn't even touch without feeling nervous. It unnerved him to some degree, feeling such a thing towards a prey and enemy, and made it the first in history that the predator fell in love with the prey.

His eyes twitched.

The slim form suddenly ceased its walk, gracefully turning back to meet the eyes that glowed in the darkness. Grimmjow was not intimidated nor was surprised, he knew perfectly well just who his prey was and what it was capable of. What happened next was nothing but deafening silence making the way they were looking at each other intensify, but Grimmjow broke the connection, stepping out of the darkness and calling out softly to his prey.

"Ulquiorra,"

"Grimmjow." The _prey_ replied casually, hands on pockets. "We had an agreement about this."

"Well, nobody's around." The teal-haired Espada slouched, sliding his hands to his pockets as he walked closer the smaller one. He stared at his impassive face, hoping to at least see anything even hatred, but like always, there was nothing. "I just wanted to see you. Is that wrong?"

"You just saw me an hour ago."

"That was during that bastard's tea party, it doesn't count. Why aren't you talking to me?"

"I am and now we are done talking." He turned around, walking away. "Stop following me."

Grimmjow growled, catching one of the Cuarta's hands, and pulled him to his chest. He wrapped an arm around Ulquiorra's small hips and leaned down, taking those pale lips in a passionate kiss. Drowned with the wonderful sensation, two pairs of eyes fell close, all concentration falling into the kiss.

"Grimmjow," Ulquiorra gasped, feeling his lower lip being rolled between his lover's sharp set of teeth. He tried to push him away, but every time he was kissed, his strength suddenly goes somewhere he couldn't reach. Perhaps Grimmjow knew this and was taking advantage of it since they kiss almost every time they meet. "Someone..."

Green eyes hid once more when Ulquiorra felt a foreign tongue invade his mouth, wrapping his arms around the neck of the taller man. He tilted his head a little to deepen the kiss even more. Yeah, Grimmjow sure knew what their kisses did to him. Once they parted, Ulquiorra raised a pale hand to cover his lover's pink lips, continuing the thought that was previously cut off. "Someone might see."

The Sexta Espada growled, pressing his forehead against the others. "Why can't they know? Why can't that bastard know?"

"We've already talked about this."

"I still don't understand why, because I really can't understand the reasons you keep on giving me."

"It's complicated."

"I think I'm smart enough to understand, don't you?" Ulquiorra's green eyes flew up, staring emptily as if saying... "Okay, damn it! I get it, I get it."

"Someone is coming."

"Shit." He groaned, stepping back and releasing the stoic Espada from his arms, but kept his firm grip on one of his lover's soft hand. "But lemme get this straight... we can stop hiding when that bastard's gone, right?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Just answer me."

Ulquiorra fell silent for a while, looking back at his lover's blue eyes. He was thinking if he should answer it and what could be the purpose of the Sexta Espada for asking such a question. Grimmjow wasn't smart, but he wasn't stupid, too, right? Grimmjow couldn't be thinking of doing something like...

His green eyes grew wide, recognizing the approaching reiatsu. "Grimmjow, I have to go."

"Answer me first."

"Let go."

"Answer me."

"Yes, Grimmjow. Yes." Ulquiorra tugged at his hand. "Now, let me go."

"Thank you." Grimmjow smiled, giving his lover a chaste kiss before fleeing with his fastest speed of Sonido.

**xxx**

Pantera flew away from his grip, the Sexta Espada falling down to his knees, but still he tried to stand. Wiping the blood that poured out from the cut on his lip, he glared at those pair of eyes that looked down on him. He hated it when people treated him as a lesser being, and hated it more... when he could see pity in them.

Grimmjow's body was beginning to feel heavy, and every step he did was harder to take than the last. He was nearing his limit, he was sure, and yet his enemy had not still pulled out his zanpakuto. It was purely insulting, that what he felt, which is why he couldn't give up and just let himself fall down flat to the ground to get some rest. His enemy wasn't fighting anywhere near to his advantage. He was going to lose, and the worst case scenario was that he could die. He doubted the latter though.

"ULQUIORRA!" He roared, blood spouting out of his mouth. "What in the fucking hell is with your damn shitty head?!"

Ulquiorra stared back impassively, the insults not even reaching his ears. He was still standing where he was an hour ago, a quick attack here and there was all that he did, and yet his enemy was already bruised up, blooded, and with a lot of fractures. On other times, he was sure he wouldn't put up with the pointless fight anymore, but of course, his enemy today was an exception.

"Withdraw." He said like an order. "You are clearly no match for me."

"Fuck you!" Grimmjow spat, gritting his teeth. This was awful and very much shameful. All these time, he thought he had gotten stronger and yet he did not even manage to land a single hit at the Espada who was only two ranks higher than him. He hated it, hated so much that he was weak.

Blue orbs moved to the corner of the eyes, spotting the hilt of his zanpakuto only a few feet from him. After awaiting an opportunity, he dashed towards it and hurriedly secured it in his hand. Grimmjow placed Pantera by its hilt, a position that made Ulquiorra lose a little bit of his coldness, and put his fingers over the blade. "Grind!"

He was about to release, Ulquiorra noted, but before the Sexta Espada managed to call out the name, he was already an inch away from him. Ulquiorra held the zanpakuto's blade and broke it in two with a vice-like grip, making Resurreccion now impossible for the blue-eyed Espada.

Moving his lips close to his lover's ear, he whispered, "Withdraw." and reappeared to his previous place by the doorway as if he didn't really move. Ulquiorra raised a hand and flicked out a finger, concentrating his reiatsu at the tip to form his peculiar green Cero.

"Shit!"

"Withdraw."

"Like hell!" Grimmjow raised his broken zanpakuto and slid his finger against blade, cutting his skin. He clenched his fists and forced blood to come out, then faced his enemy, firing his own blue Cero. "Gran Rey Cero!"

Ulquiorra dismissed his own, not firing his green Cero, and deflected his enemy's with his own hand instead. Once the Cero disappeared, leaving thick clouds of smoke, he realized that the Sexta Espada wasn't on his prior position anymore.

"Gotcha, ya little shit!" the blue-haired Espada appeared behind the Cuarta, pushing him down to the ground with all his weight and straddled the hips. He wrapped his fingers around his lover's neck to keep him in place and used the other to secure both slim arms on the back. "Seriously! What in the fuck is with you? Can't you see I'm doing this for us?"

"You're not." Ulquiorra answered, staring back. "Don't use 'us' as an excuse to die."

"I am not going to die!" He growled, "Is that what this is about?"

There was silence, then after a while, the Cuatra Espada spoke again. "Can you beat me, Grimmjow?"

"What?"

"You can't." Ulquiorra said, answering himself and not needing anyone else's. "What makes you think you can defeat Aizen-sama when you can't even get pass me?"

"I can't get pass you because I don't want to kill you!"

"Don't get ahead of yourself."

"Oh, shut up!"

"I don't want to have you killed."

"Then what in the fucking hell do you propose that we do?! I can't fucking hide forever! It makes me feel like I'm ashamed of you or myself, and I'm sure as hell am not! That bastard's not even one of us, and that makes it all a lot harder for me than it should be!" The Sexta Espada spat, "If you're really worried, you'd just get out of the way and let me kill that asshole!"

Ulquiorra fell silent again, and then... "Get off."

"Huh?"

"Get off, Grimmjow."

"No."

"I'm not going to fight you."

Grimmjow eyed his lover. He knew Ulquiorra better than anyone, and he knew the stoic Espada would rather die than to lie, but somehow, he still didn't want to let go. There was a little voice in the back of his mind that was telling him that if he lets go, he was surely going to regret it later... but Grimmjow had never been the type to think hard on things as much as Ulquiorra did. He stood up, releasing the pale Arrancar, and helped him up.

The raven-haired Cuarta brushed his uniform, and simply rested for a couple of minutes, breathing in and out peacefully. After he deemed that he had rested enough, he pulled out his zanpakuto which his lover whistled at. "Damn, it's about time that you—"

Suddenly, Grimmjow's world twisted around. His head became so light and the pain he was feeling all over his body disappeared within a split second. Everything appeared like they were dissolving in his blue eyes, and soon he realized just why.

"Ul... quiorra..." Grimmjow reached out, his hands only reaching the foot of his lover. "Why?"

"I don't want you to die." Was the green-eyed Espada's answer, simply repeating his prior statement. Ulquiorra stepped away from the Sexta's reach and watched as his lover slowly drifted to unconsciousness as impassive as he could. He had never found dismissing his emotions hard, but that was before the both of them got together. Grimmjow became a big part of his life, and losing him was simply something he could not bear.

Grimmjow felt light, as if he was swimming on water, but he could still feel the cold floor against his cheek. He didn't have any idea what was happening, and the only thing he knew was that he couldn't move due to something his lover did to him. Other than that, he didn't know anything. He didn't even know what move Ulquiorra did to put him in such a state. His thoughts were slowly getting disorganized, his own thoughts becoming even harder to put together.

"...Bind,"

He heard a familiar voice.

"Murcielago."

Darkness filled his sight. He didn't know if he fell asleep or something was simply covering his eyes. He tried to move, something in the back of his head, which despite the grogginess, told him that he should stand and do something. Grimmjow didn't know why or what for, but the last time he didn't listen to the small voice was how he ended up like so paralyzed.

He suddenly hearing voices talking, and soon there were explosions... screams... sound of metal clashing. What was happening? He had a clue, but he couldn't think of it too hard to be sure. He felt like he was in the middle of being awake and asleep, a state wherein you know you're still up but couldn't do what you wanted to do but close your eyes.

_Ulquiorra?_

Suddenly, he couldn't hear anymore. The sounds that were echoing in his ears were gone the next second, and those green eyes he so loved to see was lost in his mind. He didn't know how it happened, but all he could remember was that there were green. There was nothing else he could remember. He couldn't believe he could forget the face of his lover.

_What's happening?_

He could feel his heart beating all over his body, blood and a certain emotion surging throughout his system. He tried moving his fingers, but he couldn't. He felt like he didn't have any. He tried to look for anything, but started to feel like he never saw before. He tried calling out, something that seemed to be the easiest thing to do.

_Ulquiorra!_

But he couldn't even hear himself when he called. Has his throat dried up?

_Where are you?_

He couldn't see anything but darkness, couldn't even find his self in that void. He felt so lost, but where was that person who promised to stay with him? Surely there was one, he just couldn't remember who. That person had green eyes, and that they were pretty. Beautiful. The perfect green eyes.

_Hey! Come out!_

But even how many times or how loud he called, nobody answered. Nothing ever changed.

_Hey... someone!_

Grimmjow reached out, suddenly feeling that the tip of his fingers touched something, and slowly the darkness faded... or more like broke. Was he inside a Caja Negaccion? Why was he there? But when he saw another hand reaching out to him, he forgot everything else, and all he did was to reach out to it, too.

_Ulquiorra._

Yes, that was the name. He could feel warmth touching his face, or was it not? No, it was cold. It wasn't warmth. It was as if he was back on the dark world again, only that there was light before him now. What was it that was in his face?

_Ulquiorra?_

His sight cleared completely.

"Ulquiorra." He called out, suddenly feeling better when he heard his own voice reaching his ears. He met a beautiful pair of eyes that seemed so familiar. He could feel his hand being held, and when he thought he was starting to feel a lot better, his consciousness was again taken away from him. With a smile on his face, he was happy to remember how the person he loved looked like.

"Grimmjow," Ulquiorra touched his lover's cheek, brushing off the broken remnants of the black prison. "I'm sorry."

The wind suddenly blew, a very rare and special occasion to the eternal desert of Hueco Mundo. Slowly, the hand that held his lover was turned into dust and Ulquiorra couldn't do anything but watch. He hoped to touch the face just a little longer, but his other arm was already gone without him noticing.

Ulquiorra looked one last time at his lover's face, noticing the small smile on his lips. He leaned down, pressing a light kiss against it as more of his body was blown into grains to meld with the white desert outside Las Noches.

Grimmjow felt those shy lips touch his ever so softly, and it made him smile a little wider in his sleep. He felt the wind blow against his skin as well, and it made him feel better, but if only he was granted of consciousness even a minute longer then he would've seen his lover turning into dust and lose that sweet smile he had on his lips.

"I love you."

Oh, he loved seeing those eyes and kissing those lips. He was even dreaming of it at the moment without knowing what was happening in the conscious world. If only he had fought against the darkness for a while longer, he would've known what grave consequences his actions had brought to others.

_I love you, too._

Because the next time he wakes up...

_Ulquiorra._

...he wouldn't even find a proof that he was alive.

* * *

**FOR THOSE WHO DIDN'T GET IT**, Ulquiorra fought Aizen in place of Grimmjow. :P

...and **Dior Crytal**, I so love you more! Here's another to spoil you and make you fat! XDD


End file.
